The Secrets of Autism “Autistic people often suffer from a bewlidering array of problems --sensory disturbances, food allergies, gastrointestinal problems, depression, obsessive compulsiveness, subclinical epilepsy, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. But there is, reserachers believe, a central defect, and that is the difficulty people across the autistic spectrum have in developing a theory of mind. That's psychologese for the realization, which most children come to by the age of 4, that other people have thoughts, wishes and desires that are not mirror images of their own." These staggering findings are just the tip of the iceberg in what seems to be an explosion of identified cases of Autism and Asperger's Syndrome. As a future educator, the sher increase in the number of children affected by these types of syndromes, should be an indicator that I need to begin adapting the way I approach my teaching.
My future teaching methods will include intense observation of my children, coupled with an effective individual approach to each of my children's needs. Students with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome have high rates of social ineptitude. As a teacher, I will attempt to weave these children into the classroom's social fabric, and will be open and informative with other students in the classroom who may question why these students behave in these manners. As a teacher, my main goal is to advocate each of my students; I have a duty to do the same to children who are afflicted with these often devastating disorders.
Overcoming Cerebral Palsy Keith is a perfect example of what children with cerebral palsy should aspire towards. His tenacity, courage, and hope in the face of adversity is astounding. Because of Keith's unflinching belief in himself, he has overcome the struggles presented to him in his mild case of cerebral pasly. As a teacher, I will encourage my students with such a disorder to push on and try to do things despite what people say--or how they stare. Cerebral palsy doesn't have to be a jail sentence in your own body. Keith has compensated for his cerebral palsy by working on his upper body strength, and honing in on his people skills. His mental determination has brought him to this point in his life, and he serves as a reminder that being diagnosed with a debilitating disorder doesn't mean it is the end of your world.
In my future classroom, I will have physical, hands on activities that are appropriate for my cerebral palsy students, but that challenging enough so that it will work on both their fine and gross motor skills. Activities utilizing manipulatives and building are great examples of how I'll incorporate physical skill into curriculum. I will work closely with the parents of my CP students in order to work out a schedule that will benefit their child and also benefit their child as a student in my classroom. If a student gets too tired after certain times, or activities, I will provide alternative activities that the student can complete, without being behind--and certainly I will extend deadlines to the CP students' necessity. My ultimate goal is to ensure the best education for my CP students, whether it be by tweaking my curriculum, or adding in some extra physical activities in order to work on their muscular abilities.
Attention Deficit Disorder Brandi Valentine is a single mother raising an ADHD child. Sound exhausting? Painful? You bet. Brandi says, "As for the pain, it's impossible for a mother to ever stop feeling the pain. I think the best we can hope for is to know that we're doing the best we can, and realize, that nobody, not teachers, not family members, no one knows our child like we do and nobody will ever love them like we do." This is a poignant look at how this mother has struggled with raising her son who has ADHD. This disorder is without a doubt one of the biggest issues facing parents and educators in today's world. And with the onset of different medications, therapies, etc., to help alleviate students from their disorder, it just seems to get muddled even more with the myriad of opinions surrounding it.
As a teacher, I will ensure that I discuss with the parents how they handle their children's disorder at home, and come up with a similar, or comparable routine in the classroom. My students that have ADD/ADHD will be expected to follow the classrooms, as will be the case for all my other students, but my ADD/ADHD students will have other expectations and goals separate from the other children in class. It will be on an individual basis, but I will work with students and devise a set of 2 or 3 goals that they want to reach weekly such as: "I will not speak out in class," "I will not touch other students." These simple goals will help keep students aware, and if they don't succeed, then they will be disciplined by having privileges taken away. If they succeed, they will be rewarded with classroom helper rewards, i.e., line leader, chalkboard eraser, etc. I want my students to all feel apart of the classroom environment, and if they do well in their own individual goals then they'll be rewarded.
The following is a poem written by Brandi Valentine:
She sees in her children
what others can't see,
when to tame the spirit
when to set it free,
she sees the character
like no one can
and sees when a boy
turns into a man,
others may judge,
and tell her she's wrong
but she hears when her girl
begins a young woman's song,
nothing should rush
a mother's judgement so true,
for she knows what she has
and she knows what to do
sometimes she'll doubt
and sometimes she'll cry
and think that there's
nothing left she can try,
but sure as we live
and sure as we breathe
children will grow
into more than we perceive
Articles
The Secrets of Autism“Autistic people often suffer from a bewlidering array of problems --sensory disturbances, food allergies, gastrointestinal problems, depression, obsessive compulsiveness, subclinical epilepsy, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. But there is, reserachers believe, a central defect, and that is the difficulty people across the autistic spectrum have in developing a theory of mind. That's psychologese for the realization, which most children come to by the age of 4, that other people have thoughts, wishes and desires that are not mirror images of their own." These staggering findings are just the tip of the iceberg in what seems to be an explosion of identified cases of Autism and Asperger's Syndrome. As a future educator, the sher increase in the number of children affected by these types of syndromes, should be an indicator that I need to begin adapting the way I approach my teaching.
My future teaching methods will include intense observation of my children, coupled with an effective individual approach to each of my children's needs. Students with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome have high rates of social ineptitude. As a teacher, I will attempt to weave these children into the classroom's social fabric, and will be open and informative with other students in the classroom who may question why these students behave in these manners. As a teacher, my main goal is to advocate each of my students; I have a duty to do the same to children who are afflicted with these often devastating disorders.
Overcoming Cerebral Palsy
Keith is a perfect example of what children with cerebral palsy should aspire towards. His tenacity, courage, and hope in the face of adversity is astounding. Because of Keith's unflinching belief in himself, he has overcome the struggles presented to him in his mild case of cerebral pasly. As a teacher, I will encourage my students with such a disorder to push on and try to do things despite what people say--or how they stare. Cerebral palsy doesn't have to be a jail sentence in your own body. Keith has compensated for his cerebral palsy by working on his upper body strength, and honing in on his people skills. His mental determination has brought him to this point in his life, and he serves as a reminder that being diagnosed with a debilitating disorder doesn't mean it is the end of your world.
In my future classroom, I will have physical, hands on activities that are appropriate for my cerebral palsy students, but that challenging enough so that it will work on both their fine and gross motor skills. Activities utilizing manipulatives and building are great examples of how I'll incorporate physical skill into curriculum. I will work closely with the parents of my CP students in order to work out a schedule that will benefit their child and also benefit their child as a student in my classroom. If a student gets too tired after certain times, or activities, I will provide alternative activities that the student can complete, without being behind--and certainly I will extend deadlines to the CP students' necessity. My ultimate goal is to ensure the best education for my CP students, whether it be by tweaking my curriculum, or adding in some extra physical activities in order to work on their muscular abilities.
Attention Deficit Disorder
Brandi Valentine is a single mother raising an ADHD child. Sound exhausting? Painful? You bet. Brandi says, "As for the pain, it's impossible for a mother to ever stop feeling the pain. I think the best we can hope for is to know that we're doing the best we can, and realize, that nobody, not teachers, not family members, no one knows our child like we do and nobody will ever love them like we do." This is a poignant look at how this mother has struggled with raising her son who has ADHD. This disorder is without a doubt one of the biggest issues facing parents and educators in today's world. And with the onset of different medications, therapies, etc., to help alleviate students from their disorder, it just seems to get muddled even more with the myriad of opinions surrounding it.
As a teacher, I will ensure that I discuss with the parents how they handle their children's disorder at home, and come up with a similar, or comparable routine in the classroom. My students that have ADD/ADHD will be expected to follow the classrooms, as will be the case for all my other students, but my ADD/ADHD students will have other expectations and goals separate from the other children in class. It will be on an individual basis, but I will work with students and devise a set of 2 or 3 goals that they want to reach weekly such as: "I will not speak out in class," "I will not touch other students." These simple goals will help keep students aware, and if they don't succeed, then they will be disciplined by having privileges taken away. If they succeed, they will be rewarded with classroom helper rewards, i.e., line leader, chalkboard eraser, etc. I want my students to all feel apart of the classroom environment, and if they do well in their own individual goals then they'll be rewarded.
The following is a poem written by Brandi Valentine:
She sees in her children
what others can't see,
when to tame the spirit
when to set it free,
she sees the character
like no one can
and sees when a boy
turns into a man,
others may judge,
and tell her she's wrong
but she hears when her girl
begins a young woman's song,
nothing should rush
a mother's judgement so true,
for she knows what she has
and she knows what to do
sometimes she'll doubt
and sometimes she'll cry
and think that there's
nothing left she can try,
but sure as we live
and sure as we breathe
children will grow
into more than we perceive